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Constitution Day: Three Visions of Virginia
Author William C. Wooldridge shared historical maps as fascinating windows into Virginia’s early place in the world
University News | September 18, 2025
How has the Commonwealth of Virginia been represented over the centuries and what does that reveal about mapmakers' visions for the future and about the Constitution? In honor of Constitution Day, William C. “Bill” Wooldridge, author of “Mapping Virginia: From the Age of Exploration to the Civil War,” invited the campus community to consider these very questions. Through an interesting presentation of historical maps, Wooldridge demonstrated how geography, ambition, and power shaped the way Virginia was perceived in its earliest centuries.
From the vague outlines of the 1500s to territorial claims stretching to the Mississippi River in the 1700s, maps of Virginia told stories far beyond simple directions. “William Byrd is reported to have said, ‘In the beginning, all America was Virginia,’” Wooldridge noted. “In fact, Bermuda was at one time even considered a part of Virginia.”
A lifelong collector of maps, Wooldridge guided the audience of students, faculty, staff, and guests through what he described as “Virginia’s Changing Shapes.” He highlighted three key perspectives: the “almost continental Virginia” depicted in maps of the 1500s and 1600s; John Smith’s 17th-century vision of Virginia as the Chesapeake watershed; and, following military and political shifts, Virginia’s expansion “To the Mississippi and Back” between 1700 and 1865.
Wooldridge, a Harvard graduate who also studied medieval history at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, is widely regarded as one of the foremost authorities on Virginia cartography. He has served as trustee of the Virginia Historical Society, president of both the Norfolk Historical Society and the John Marshall Foundation, and retired as vice president (law) of Norfolk Southern Corporation. Introducing him to the VWU audience, Dr. Craig Wansink, director of the Robert Nusbaum Center, described Wooldridge as “the dean of Virginia cartography” for his decades-long pursuit of rare maps and deep scholarship on Virginia’s historical geography.
The Constitution Day program was presented by the Robert Nusbaum Center at VWU in recognition of Constitution & Citizenship Day, observed nationally each year on September 17 to mark the adoption of the United States Constitution. Wesleyan Engaged hosted a resource table at the event, offering free pocket copies of the Constitution and voter registration materials.
For the full schedule of fall 2025 programs, visit the Robert Nusbaum Center at VWU.